Not content with providing just fee-ridden television and internet service, Comcast is looking to charge up to $49.95 to stream movies to your home the day they premier in theaters. The two largest movie theater operators, Regal Entertainment and National Amusements, have banded together to express their displeasure, with Regal’s CEO saying: “We’re not interested in playing anything that makes its debut in the home and at the theater at the same time.” Comcast doesn’t care.
Stephen Burke, Comcast’s cable president and chief operating officer, told an audience at an industry conference this week that several studios were “very interested” in the idea of allowing cable providers to charge $29.95 to $49.95 to watch an opening-day movie at home. He said it would increase studio revenues rather than cannibalize them, if handled properly.
The studios, too busy drooling over the prospects of additional profit, declined to comment. Would you forego the deliciously buttery movie theater experience for the comfort of your home? Tell us in the comments. — CAREY GREENBERG-BERGER
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$50 no.
$30 yes.
@Onouris: Oh really? $7 popcorn when I can make it my own way from a $1 bag with the seasonings I want? $0.50 sodas instead of $3 sodas? Captions on the screen that the movie theaters fail to provide, thus being inaccessible to the deaf/hard-of-hearing? Ability to pause the movie any time I want? My chair/couch in which I can stretch out and use my own blanket to keep my legs warm? My room temperature? My pause button?
I’m an idiot, now?
I don’t think so.
You were saying?
With the way the theater owners are behaving, you’d think they were selling buggy whips or something…
@Buran: Mind you, I don’t pay $50. I don’t know why they think they can charge that when the market has decided that $15-$20 (at MOST) is the correct price for a home-watchable copy of a film.
Hell yes I would, as long they offer them in HD. I have a nice enough projector, and haaaaate going to the movie theater enough that I’d be all over it.
Plus, even at $50, if you split it five ways it’s actually cheaper than movie tickets, AND you can drink during the movie.
I think it would be great. You’d just have to get 7 of your closest friends together, and it would be cheaper than a matinee without any of the weekend-opening lines, expensive parking and traffic.
Plus, what is so great about the theater experience? Crying babies, people talking, $5-6 popcorn? I’d much rather watch using my digital projector and Dolby 5.1 surround.
@Buran:
Oh I’m sorry, you thought you had a point in all of that? Oh wait, no you didn’t.
So you don’t want to pay the cinema prices? Don’t pay them. Are you actually unable to watch the film without popcorn etc? It’s not even like it’s hard to take your own drinks in there, or your own blanked if you are that picky about temperature…
“Where the film makers have provided the required digital disk, certain performances in this auditoria will have captions on-screen. These performances will be listed separately with the word “Captioned” after the film title.”
The theatres failing to provide? No, the film makes fail to provide.
I’ve read several comments where people say ZOMG you have to be a retard to want to watch new releases in your home or the experience will suck. I have a feeling most of these people don’t have infants with no one willing to watch them. I wouldn’t have a problem paying to watch a new release in my house. My wife and I haven’t watched a new release in a long time (almost a year) because we don’t have anyone to watch our kids. Even if we did manage to find someone we trust to watch our kids after paying them to watch them and then paying all the charges at the theater it would be about the same price.
One time when I went to the Waterfront Theater in Pittsburgh, these four — I apologize for using the term but it suits them — eurotrash guys sat down. The problem: Their panteen pro-v style hair (long hair, down to mid-back) obviously hadn’t been washed in a month.
My girlfriend kept hitting me because she thought I was farting all the time. Then imagine our disgust when we realized we were breathing in a cloud of their body funk.
I don’t want to go to theaters because I don’t feel its worth $20 to be around the *literally UNWASHED masses*. It soured me on the whole experience. And when you consider that theaters put something like 15 minutes of commercials ahead of the previews, well, I don’t feel the value reflects the price.
Interesting idea, but too much money.
Regal tickets are only $8 each around these parts. I’d rather spend the money to go to the theater, and have a night out, instead of sitting at home and paying money to sit on my couch.
People over 16 years old still go to the cinema to see movies?
Do they still grab a malted from the soda jerk on the way home through the town square?
Add another $30 or so for a babysitter…I’m sold on this idea. Get the price down to $35 and I’ll love it. I’m actually fond of the whole Cinema Cafe experience…if they could improve the food. Theatres would be forced into this business model…focusing on servicing the customer, and enhancing the viewer experience, which in the end is the best thing for the consumer anyway. It’s a win-win.
$50 to watch a movie in the comfort of your own home? It’s actually cheaper to just go to the movies.
Only retards would pay for this service.
If it were a film I really wanted to see I’d pay up to $30, otherwise I’d wait for DVD.
I don’t go to the theatre anymore–
1. Because movies in general suck these days, I’m unwilling to pay for what they’re offering, and refreshments are egregiously priced.
2. Because fellow movie goers can be inconsiderate/rude in all sorts of ways.
It just seems to be a bad business model overall when you have to pay $20.00 for a ticket, some popcorn and 16oz. bottle of water and then have to sit in a theatre with crying children, grown adults constantly talking or getting up to go outside, answering the phone, kicking your chair, saturating the air with offensive perfume/cologne, etc.
I’m all for busting up old and tired institutions. Let the consumer decide.
i think they’re basing the price on the age-old idea of mom, dad & 2-1/2 kids.
w/ what i’ve seen in the theatres lately, i think i’d pay comcast $50 just to keep it OUT of my living room.
it would be a great idea to get some indie movies/foreign films that you normally can’t see in the theatres (then again, isn’t that what sundance is for? idk, i don’t subscribe)
& finally, please guys, can we grow a collective spine here? if the asshole next to you is talking on the phone, tell him to stop. don’t pretend you can’t hear him. & if he doesn’t, take it out of his hand & throw it. i’ve only done that once, but i think that idiot got the message (plus, he didn’t sit back down next to me after he went scrambling for his phone – BONUS!).
I wasn’t sure whether that’s $29.95 to $49.95 per movie or per month as noted in the opening article.
Whether the price is per movie or per month my wife and I won’t pay it.
Here’s what we do:
1) We have the $14.95/month Netflix service (2 DVDs out at a time).
2) We check out the reviews of new movie releases in the Sunday paper. Usually we choose the the 3-4 star (out of 4 stars) rated movies.
3) We put the selected movies into our Netflix queue (yes we know they’re not available yet).
4) In a few months when the movie is released on DVD we receive the movie and watch it.
5) We make our own popcorn.
Ed
Only for HDTVs. Straight up, the only way this thing will be able to hit the market is the requirement to use HDMI. Otherwise, the likelihood of this not being cracked would be low. So for all those without HDMI, too bad, this won’t be happening for you.
Why do these corporate douchebags’ imaginative ideas always end up reading like bad April Fool’s pranks?
I’ve been waiting for this day to come, the movie experience for my girlfriend and I, these days is horrible to say the least. I dread going to a theatre to see a movie. If it’s not the baby crying, it’s the old lady that can’t hear and is asking her friend what was just said, or the idiot sending a text message (the small light from your cell phone is like a beacon when all the lights are off DickHead), “stop kicking my chair KID!” Damn dude, use a toothpick to get that piece of popcorn stuck in your tooth, stop laughing at inappropriate times. Should I go on? I would gladly pay $50 to see an opening day movie, where do I sign up?
@mac-phisto:
Yep, last time someone annoyed me I just turned around and straight out told them to shut the fuck up. They did.
Getting them kicked out and wasting their money on half a film also works well.
I’ve been looking forward to this day for a long time.
Some people say you’ll be paying more for a lesser experience. I disagree entirely.
I’m already looking at a bare minimum of $35-40 for the “going out to the movies” experience for two between the $10 tickets and $4-7 drinks and snacks.
I’d think nothing of paying $10 more to avoid the lines, smells, sounds and drive that a trip to the theatre while enjoying the comfortable peace of my own home.
Beyond that, just add an extra person or two to the value of the viewing only gets better.
i don’t know if anyone has thought about it this way at $50.00 a pop. I don’t have kids, but some of my friends do and here’s how they look at movies:
to take their 2 kids (and usually a friend) is 5 tickets (just assume matinee) at $6.00ea is $30.00, plus drinks for all at $3 and a bucket of popcorn at $6 they’re at $51 to walk in the door at the theater.
if they go on a date, $15 for tix (no matinee) $50 for a babysitter, and $50 for dinner (since they’ve got the sitter). $115+ for a dinner/movie date
at $50 a show w/ comcast, the kids can have a few friends over, they can order $20 worth of pizza (nowdays that’s 4 or more pies). AND sit in the other room and comment on Consumerist.com
@mac-phisto & Onouris say: [reply to this comment]:
& finally, please guys, can we grow a collective spine here? if the asshole next to you is talking on the phone, tell him to stop. don’t pretend you can’t hear him. & if he doesn’t, take it out of his hand & throw it. i’ve only done that once, but i think that idiot got the message (plus, he didn’t sit back down next to me after he went scrambling for his phone – BONUS!).
-or-
Yep, last time someone annoyed me I just turned around and straight out told them to shut the fuck up. They did.
Getting them kicked out and wasting their money on half a film also works well.
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Ah yes, the internet tough guys… you failed to mention what type of martial arts you mastered to conquer said ruffians…
When the chowerheads talk, yes they are told stop. Perhaps a web board is not quite the place to beat ones chest on how people are to STFU. Some STFU, some are complete idiots and or jerks that don’t.
Now I know a couple of real tough guys like you will then turn around and punch them right in their pop-corn spewing bread basket, getting applause from everyone along with a couple hot co-eds running to congratulate you on such a swift knock out with beer and hot dog. But in the real world that usually only lands the rest of us non movie-super-hero types in with assault charges.
Oh but we are supposed to run to the pimpled faced 16 year old that just made manager that week and tell them about the idiot with the crying baby or blathering on with Buffy about her BFF Jill trying to steal someones boyfriend on the cell phone, right?
Once again, you being the total hip dude everybody loves get service right away, the offender kicked out and no doubt drowned in vat of buttery popcorn oil. And I bet they even re-wind the part of the movie you just missed while going to tattle on Jim-bob and how his 17 children are gnawing on the seat cushions.
If you like the movies, more power to you. I like them too but I’m not so obsessed with them that I won’t consider alternatives. When first runs come out on a service other than Comcast and in the $30 range then I’ll think more about it.
But don’t let that stop you from going on about how everyone who doesn’t appreciate the Dolby 5.1 whatever that only techno-geeks care about telling us the movies are far more superior. You know you are just dying to give us the latest specs and all…
This is very, very bad for theatres. All they have going for themselves is exclusivity for a couple of months, and the studios hate that because they have to pay for two publicity blitzes (theatrical, DVD) instead of one. So of course they will refuse to show movies which also premiere on Comcast.
Which means that independent theatres will get those movies instead, and do well because they’ll be semi-exlusive runs. Hmmmmm. I like it.
@Trick:
Oh yes, I know the sheer number of ‘technical specs’ included in the sentence “child’s play compared to a decent cinema” are bewildering to someone as spineless as yourself, but to the average person, it’s not that baffling to be honest.
What do you have against pimple faced 16 year olds who are made manager? Are you jealous they’re 16 and probably making more money than you?
The fact that you liken telling someone to shut the hell up to punching them in the face basically shows me that you have no idea what you’re talking about and it is infact you who are pretending to be the tough guy here. Some words can be powerful but wow, I didn’t know they had the ‘punch in the face’ effect, that really is amazing, don’t you think?
Who actually cares whether you think they are considering the alternatives or not? You want to pay $30 for a single film, go ahead, be the laughing stock of the entire neighbourhood.
You must be the first person who’s shown support for the morons. Maybe you were one all those years ago, maybe your spine has just withered away over the years or, hell, maybe you still are one of the imbeciles who thinks they’re ever so cool if they annoy everyone else.
@Onouris:
Who actually cares whether you think they are considering the alternatives or not? You want to pay $30 for a single film, go ahead, be the laughing stock of the entire neighbourhood.
–
Who actually cares? Oh I don’t know, probably nobody other than some pinhead wannabe tough guy who is probably closer to being that pimpled face 16 year old the cute girls laugh at when he rambles on about how theaters are far better than staying at home.
Let it out Onouris, you will feel better after you talk tough and act like the big shot from the safety of your little computer world.
Here, I’ll make it even easier for you.
OOOH, you are scary Onouris. Please don’t woop up on my spineless little self anymore. If you do, I may not get that manager job at Regal. And if I don’t, then I will never end up like you.
I really like this idea. The cinema is great but I’ve put a lot into my home theater. If you have a movie night and everyone splits the cost it will be cheaper anyway. I’d still go to the IMax for certain releases but I’d much rather watch it at home usually.
@Trick:
Ah yes, the internet tough guys… you failed to mention what type of martial arts you mastered to conquer said ruffians…
When the chowerheads talk, yes they are told stop. Perhaps a web board is not quite the place to beat ones chest on how people are to STFU. Some STFU, some are complete idiots and or jerks that don’t.
Now I know a couple of real tough guys like you will then turn around and punch them right in their pop-corn spewing bread basket, getting applause from everyone along with a couple hot co-eds running to congratulate you on such a swift knock out with beer and hot dog. But in the real world that usually only lands the rest of us non movie-super-hero types in with assault charges.
-
Well said.
I’ve actually done the type of thing those dorks above are fantasizing about. I’m also pretty much the guy these guys fantasize of being. I’m bif wrestled, boxed and more.
Of course, it was in reaction to something a bit more offense than talking on a cellphone.
Guess what?
It really doesn’t matter if the guy was being a complete dick, it doesn’t matter if on top of that he decides to hit you first, hell it doesn’t even matter people see it, the cops show up and they tell the guy he deserved it and he should fuck off.
That rude ass in the theatre can still run off to the commissioner, say whatever the hell he wants and if the guy buys it, haul you into court if only to waste your time.
Now you have to go make a counterclaim, find a lawyer and/or attend a preliminary and eventually go to court. This costs lots of time and money, $750-1500 minimum for a criminal lawyer and at least a day off work.
It can potentially cost you a lot more. Good luck with professional job search if you have a fresh assault conviction on your record.
Who wants to deal with all that shit? It just isn’t worth it. It has absolutely, nothing to do with having balls or being tough.
This is actually one of the big reasons I’m all for this Comcast plan. I know bad things are going to happen when I’m faced with rude, aggressive, stupid people and the best solution is to simply avoid them.
@Trick: oooh! you pegged me, trick! i certainly sound like the repressed one here, don’t i? look, if you don’t like going to the movies, just say so. don’t hide behind the fact that you don’t stand up for yourself when confronted with a problematic situation.
@02J: i’m sorry, do i know you? so what if you’re beefed…evidently you’re a little light in the cranium. you don’t get an assault charge unless you hurt someone. KRUNK MAD! KRUNK SMASH! AAARRRGGHH!